Today is the birthday of one of the world’s best-loved writers, Haruki Murakami, whose most recent novel, 1Q84 , has just been released in English to much acclaim (in case you, um, haven’t heard). The cover art gracing American editions of his books is some of the most colorful and iconic in contemporary book-cover design, and it’s no wonder — they’re (at least for all relatively recent editions) designed by two of our all-time favorites: the hardcovers by Chip Kidd, the complementary paperbacks by John Gall. And true to form, 1Q84 has gotten quite a lot of attention for its amazing design as well. But since our experience with Murakami is so connected with the visual experience of his novels and collections (there’s a certain scene we flash on every time we see that Chip Kidd bird eye, without fail), we wondered how the rest of the world might see him, so we’ve put together this collection of wonderful Murakami book covers from other parts of the world — some beautiful, some strange, some inexpressible. Click through to check them out, all arranged by book for comparative viewing, and let us know your favorites in the comments.
American editions (designed by Chip Kidd and John Gall, respectively)
Catalan edition
Turkish edition
Spanish edition
Israeli edition
German edition
French edition
Greek edition
UK edition
Chinese edition
Romanian edition
UK edition
Croatian edition
Slovakian edition
American editions (designed by Chip Kidd and John Gall, respectively)
Japanese edition
Israeli edition
UK special edition
Romanian edition
Vietnamese edition
Chinese edition
French edition
German edition
Finnish edition
American editions (designed by Chip Kidd and John Gall, respectively)
Israeli edition
Portuguese edition
Spanish edition
Norwegian edition
French edition
Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World
American edition
Dutch edition
Bosnian edition
German edition
German edition
UK edition
Romanian edition
French edition
French edition
Dutch edition
Spanish edition
Vietnamese edition
Czech edition
American edition
Portuguese edition
Finnish edition
UK edition
Dutch edition
Romanian edition
UK edition
UK edition
French edition
South of the Border, West of the Sun
American editions (designed by Chip Kidd and John Gall, respectively)
Danish edition
UK edition
Polish edition
French edition
UK edition
American edition
Ukrainian edition
Lithuanian edition
Israeli edition
Russian edition
French edition
Dutch edition
Slovakian edition
French edition
American edition
Russian editions
Portuguese edition
French edition
UK edition
Romanian edition
French edition
Slovakian edition
Dutch edition
French edition
American edition
UK edition
French edition
Romanian edition
UK edition
Chinese edition
Spanish edition
French edition
American edition
UK edition
Dutch edition
Romanian edition
French edition
Ukrainian edition
Polish edition
Hebrew edition
Spanish edition
Korean edition
Japanese edition
